Day: August 2, 2021

The number of COVID-19 cases has passed the milestone of 60 million in the WHO European region since the pandemic began, said the health body’s regional office on Monday, along with a warning that “travel is not risk-free.”

“The end of the pandemic is still over the horizon, and sadly, so far in the European region there have been more than 1.2 million COVID-19 deaths,” said Dr. Dorit Nitzan, WHO regional emergency director for Europe.

“It is important that countries continue their combined efforts to protect their most vulnerable people and those at risk,” she said.

Globally, on Monday, the WHO said there had been over 198.02 million confirmed cases of COVID-19, including some 4.22 million reported deaths while nearly 3.84 billion vaccine doses have been administered.

“For the pandemic to end, we must rapidly scale up vaccinations equitably in all countries, including supporting vaccine production, as appropriate, and sharing of doses, as relevant, to protect the vulnerable population in every country,” said Nitzan.

Vaccinations vary widely between countries in the 53 countries in the WHO European region, extending from Greenland in the northwest to the Russian Far East.

“The vaccination coverage amongst the priority population groups such as the over-60s, healthcare workers, people living in long-term care facilities, and those with underlying conditions is still low in a few countries,” said the WHO official.

‘Vaccinations prevent severe illness’

“As vaccines are proven effective in preventing severe illness and deaths, more cases in these priority groups will mean more hospitalizations and deaths. So, we must urgently get all the priority groups vaccinated.”

Dorit said there is also the need to follow public health and social measures: testing, sequencing, tracing, isolation, and quarantine, along with handwashing, wearing a mask, and keeping physical distancing in crowded, confined, and closed places.

During Europe’s summer season, the WHO has cautioned of the risks of travel, saying that it and mass gatherings can increase the risk of getting and spreading COVID-19.

“If you want to travel, think about the need and assess your risks. Your decision counts for ending this pandemic. If you decide to travel and gather, do it safely,” said the health body.

“Avoid the three Cs; more than the travel itself, it is the place that matters. Settings that are Closed, Confined or Crowded will put you at higher risk of being infected with COVID-19.”

Source: Anadolu Agency

Turkey’s domestically produced drones – Bayraktar TB2 and Aksungur – are actively taking part in efforts to put out forest fires, the head of Turkey’s Defense Industries Presidency said on Sunday.

“Aksungur UAV detected three tower workers during its mission flight yesterday, and thankfully, it helped them escape the flames,” Ismail Demir tweeted.

Drones, also known as unmanned aerial vehicles, are often used in wildfire surveillance and suppression. They help in the detection, containment, and extinguishing of fires.

Besides material damage, at least eight people have lost their lives in the wildfires since Wednesday.

Turkish Agriculture and Forestry Minister Bekir Pakdemirli has said that 119 of 126 fires across 32 cities are under control.

The Turkish president visited areas affected by forest fires, saying 50 million (Turkish) liras [$5.91million] have been released to meet urgent needs.

Source: Anadolu Agency

The Turkish women’s national volleyball team on Monday fought hard to beat the Russian Olympic Committee (ROC) 3-2 in the Tokyo 2020 preliminary round Pool B match to complete the group phase.

Turkey won the nail-biting clash with the sets of 21-25, 25-23, 25-23, 15-25, 15-10 as the match at Ariake Arena lasted for two hours and 16 minutes.

Previously secured the quarterfinals berth in Tokyo, Turkey was led by outside hitter Meryem Boz as the 33-year-old scored 22 points against the ROC.

Tugba Senoglu racked up 13 points for Turkey. Turkish middle blocker Zehra Gunes had 11 points.

Irina Voronkova was the top scorer for the Russian Olympic Committee as she had 20 points.

Arina Fedorovtseva scored 19 and Nataliya Goncharova added 18 points for the ROC.

Turkey had 3-2 win/loss record to finish the Pool B in the third position and are now waiting for their opponents in the knockout stage, which will be unveiled after Monday’s Pool A games.

In addition to Turkey, Italy, the US and ROC qualified for the quarterfinals from the Pool B.

The quarterfinals will be held on Wednesday.

Source: Anadolu Agency

Anadolu Agency is here with a rundown of the latest developments in Turkey, around the world and the coronavirus pandemic.​​​​​​​

Developments in Turkey, coronavirus pandemic and other news

Turkey has administered more than 73.37 million doses of COVID-19 vaccines since it launched a mass vaccination campaign in January. The ministry also confirmed 20,890 new infections and 96 coronavirus-related deaths in the last 24 hours, while as many as 5,539 more patients recovered.

The number of people who have lost their lives due to massive forest fires in southern Turkey has increased to eight.

The Turkish president held separate phone conversations with Georgia and Ethiopia’s prime ministers.

Seven PKK terrorists have been neutralized in Turkey’s ongoing operations in northern Iraq.

Turkey’s Foreign Ministry issued a diplomatic note to Greece over the killing of a Turkish citizen in northwestern Edirne province by gunfire from the Greek side of the border.

Worldwide developments related to COVID-19

The number of COVID-19 vaccine shots administered worldwide crossed 4.14 billion as of Sunday.​​​​​​​

Protests were held in the German capital of Berlin against the government’s measures to prevent the spread of COVID-19, in defiance of a ban on demonstrations.

Developments across the world

The Azerbaijani Defense Ministry announced that Armenian army elements targeted the country’s positions in the Nakhchivan Autonomous Republic.

India assumed the presidency of the UN Security Council for the month of August, taking over from France.

Egypt called on Tunisians to avoid escalation and violence amid tensions after Tunisia’s president dismissed the government and suspended parliament.

A consensus has been reached inside Palestinian group Hamas to re-elect Ismail Haniyeh as the head of the movement’s political bureau for a second four-year term.

The Israeli government granted 15,000 work permits for Palestinians from the West Bank to work in the construction sector.

Seventeen Palestinian detainees in Israel have launched a hunger strike in protest of their administrative detention without charge or trial.

At least 21 people were killed and eight others injured in a road crash in Malawi.

Eight soldiers were killed or injured in Egypt’s Sinai Peninsula.

At least five civilians were killed when a mortar shell struck a taxi in Afghanistan’s southern Kandahar province.

Source: Anadolu Agency

Turkish security forces “neutralized” two YPG/PKK terrorists in northern Syria, the country’s National Defense Ministry announced on Monday.

The terrorists determined to be preparing for an attack were neutralized in the Operation Euphrates Shield zone, the ministry said on Twitter.

“The attacks of the terrorists against the region did not go unanswered and will not go so!” it added.

Turkish authorities use the term “neutralize” to imply the terrorists in question surrendered or were killed or captured.

Since 2016, Turkey has launched a trio of successful anti-terror operations across its border in northern Syria to prevent the formation of a terror corridor and enable the peaceful settlement of residents: Euphrates Shield (2016), Olive Branch (2018) and Peace Spring (2019).

In its more than 35-year terror campaign against Turkey, the PKK – listed as a terrorist organization by Turkey, the US, and EU – has been responsible for the deaths of at least 40,000 people, including women, children and infants. The YPG is the PKK’s Syrian offshoot.

Source: Anadolu Agency

A total of 122 wildfires out of 129 across Turkey’s 35 provinces have been brought under control, the country’s communications director said on Monday.

In a statement, Fahrettin Altun said all the means of the state have been mobilized to put out the blazes, which have been plaguing the country since July 28.

At least eight people have been killed and as many as 271 others affected, according to agriculture and forestry minister, and the Disaster and Emergency Management Authority (AFAD).

Turkish authorities are maintaining tireless efforts to extinguish the fires through both aerial and ground operations. Firefighters are at work along with locals and volunteers.

‘Fake news’

Altun called most of the information being spread on social media regarding Turkey’s forest fires as “fake news.”

“Let’s not fall into the trap of those who spread such lies. Please let’s rely on the official authorities’ statements,” he said. “Turkey is strong. Our state is standing tall,” he added, noting that the country will make up for all its losses.

The official underlined that every well-intentioned aid and contribution is a “necessity.” “However, the so-called aid campaign, which was organized from abroad … was launched with ideological motives, with the aim of showing our state as weak and weakening our state-nation unity,” he said.

Source: Anadolu Agency

A portable and outdoor Gym Box has changed the routine during the coronavirus pandemic for those who work out in indoor gyms.

Metehan Ozturk, a 32-year-old personal trainer in Turkey’s capital Ankara, came up with the extraordinary idea of designing and building a 2-meter (6.5-foot) container that has a multi-functional gym inside.

Ozturk said with the pandemic the perception of nature changed and stressed that people were always stuck indoors, in the office and even at coffee shops but they realized that being outdoors was more valuable.

“People started to enjoy working outdoors even more, especially after the pandemic since it’s less risky compared to an air-conditioned gym,” he said.

“Box is a portable sports unit that maintains everything a person needs for training. Professionals can also train in the unit, as well as amateurs. You attach the box to any car with a trailer and take it to a place where you want to do your workout. It takes around five minutes to set the whole thing up and then up to 15 people can do their training at the same time,” he said.

Ozturk said he was always a fan of working out in nature with his students and so he searched for ways to accomplish it outdoors and how he could carry equipment outside every time.

“It was not easy to carry all these weights every time. I needed a mechanism that would carry weights and professional sports equipment. That’s why I came up with the idea of a unit where I can take and put all the equipment with me,” he said. “There are no other portable gyms here in Turkey. There are also a few examples of this around the world but you cannot attach most of them to your car and take it anywhere anytime you want.”

“The workout is as effective as the one in a regular gym”

Ozturk emphasized that he helped his students perform High-Intensity interval training (HIIT) for 50 minutes in the box.

“The workout you do in the box is as effective as the one you do in the gym. HIIT workout is a type of cardiovascular exercise. You start burning more fat in an outdoor workout compared to indoor gyms in these exercises because you consume more energy and your body carries more oxygen and so fat burns faster,” he said.

Ozturk said the workout in the box appeals to everyone since it is time-oriented and people put maximum effort.

He said when he first came up with the idea of building the box, his colleagues did not support the idea. They said people would never get out of their comfort zone, leave air-conditioned and well-equipped gyms to train outside.

“However the coronavirus turned the tables and now people would rather be outside than be stuck indoors,” he said.

Source: Anadolu Agency

A Belarusian Olympic athlete who says she refused pressure by her team to return home over her criticism of its staff is safe and under the protection of Japanese police, local media reported on Monday.

Sprinter Krystsina Tsimanouskaya is currently “safe and secure” after asking for protection from police in Tokyo’s Haneda Airport, refusing to board a plane home following her social media criticism of her coaches, according to Kyodo News, which cited International Olympic Committee (IOC) spokesman Mark Adams at a press conference.

Confirming Adams, the Japanese government’s Chief Cabinet Secretary Katsunobu Kato said the 24-year-old was currently in a “safe situation with the cooperation of related organizations.”

“I ask the International Olympic Committee for help. I was put under pressure and they are trying to forcibly take me out of the country without my consent. I asked the IOC to intervene,” Tsimanouskaya previously said in a video posted on the Telegram channel of the Belarusian Sport Solidarity Foundation (BSSF).

The BSSF is a group created by sports officials and athletes in 2020 to support athletes repressed, sacked, or excluded for their political views.

Adams said the Olympics’ governing body was looking into the situation and had asked for clarification from the Belarusian National Olympic Committee.

He said Tsimanouskaya was in a hotel near the airport on Sunday night and made contact with police and the office of the UN high commissioner for refugees.

“The IOC and Tokyo 2020 will continue to have conversations with her and the Japanese authorities to determine the next step in the upcoming days,” Adams said, adding that the committee would support the athlete for her decision.

Tsimanouskaya ran in the Tokyo 2020 women’s 100-meter in athletics and was listed for Monday’s 200-meter competition, but did not join the race.

Source: Anadolu Agency

The international community on Monday condoled with Turkey over wildfires that have led to deaths and material damage over the past few days.

Yemeni Foreign Minister Ahmad Awad bin Mubarak sent a message to his Turkish counterpart, Mevlut Cavusoglu, expressing his condolences to the families of those who lost their lives in the fires, according to Yemen’s Foreign Ministry.

Mubarak also wished a speedy recovery to the injured, stressing that Yemen is on the side of the “fraternal” Turkish people in the fight against this natural disaster.

A delegation of Palestinian scholars also issued a message of condolence.

“We are deeply saddened by the wildfires that have erupted in many parts of fraternal country Turkey,” it said.

“We extend our condolences to those who lost their lives and to their families. We heartily share the pain of the fraternal Turkish people.”

The message also said that Palestine is praying for the firefighting teams and wishes them success.

Meanwhile, Egypt’s Al-Azhar University, the highest seat of learning in the Sunni Islamic world, published a statement, expressing its sorrow and conveying its condolences for the forest fire victims and their relatives as well as all the workers and volunteers trying to stem the spread of the massive fires.

Al-Azhar also wished early recovery to the injured, according to their statement on Facebook.

The statement said Al-Azhar was on the side of the Turkish people in the face of this tragic event.

On July 31, the Egyptian Foreign Ministry also sent a message of solidarity to Turkey, which is fighting the fires.

Kyrgyz President Sadyr Japarov also extended his condolences to his Turkish counterpart Recep Tayyip Erdogan over the wildfires.

“I am deeply saddened by the news of the loss of life as a result of fires in several provinces of Turkey. In these difficult times, I wish the people of Turkey courage and resilience in overcoming the consequences of this natural disaster,” Japarov said in his message.

“On behalf of the people of the Kyrgyz Republic and on my own behalf, I express my condolences to the families and relatives of the victims and wish a speedy recovery to all the injured,” the statement added.

“In an immediate response, the European Commission has already helped mobilize one Canadair plane from Croatia and two Canadairs from Spain. These firefighting planes are part of rescEU, the European reserve of civil protection assets,” the European Commission said in a statement.

“The EU stands in full solidarity with Turkey at this very difficult time. I thank all the countries which have offered help,” said EU Commissioner for Crisis Management Janez Lenarcic, adding they stand ready to provide further assistance.

Croatia will send a firefighting plane to Turkey as part of the fight against the fires, Croatian Foreign Minister Gordan Grlic Radman said on Twitter.

Spanish Foreign Minister Jose Manuel Albares held a phone call with his Turkish counterpart Cavusoglu to convey the solidarity of Spain and condolences for the victims of the fires.

“Mr. Albares has also informed Mr. Cavusoglu about the decision of the Spanish Government to send two CL 415 firefighting planes and a C-295 transport plane of the Spanish Air Force, as well as a complete team of the Military Emergency Unit (UME), to assist in the extinction of the wildfires,” said a statement by the Spanish ministry.

It added that the aircraft, personnel, and equipment would arrive later on Monday, as well as Tuesday.

During the phone call, Cavusoglu thanked Spain for its support and assistance to Turkey in its fight against forest fires as part of the EU Civil Protection Mechanism, according to Turkish Foreign Ministry sources.

Cavusoglu thanked Albares and Radman for their solidarity and support in separate Twitter posts.

Israel also extended its condolences to Turkey through a written Foreign Ministry statement.

“Following the disaster caused by forest fires in Turkey, the people of Israel are praying for the speedy recovery of the injured and sending their condolences to the families of the victims,” it said.

Separately, Israeli Foreign Ministry spokesman Lior Haiat dismissed social media claims that Turkey “turned down Israel’s offer to help,” adding that Tel Aviv had contacted Ankara after the fires broke out.

“Today, I extend my condolences for the loss of lives by the deadly wildfires in Turkey. Our solidarity and thoughts are with the people of Turkey and the firefighters battling the blazes,” Sweden’s Foreign Minister Ann Linde said on Twitter.

Qatar has sent a team to Turkey to take part in search and rescue activities amid the forest fires, local media reported Sunday.

According to Qatar’s state news agency QNA, a team from the Qatar International Search and Rescue Group of the Qatari Internal Security Forces departed for Turkey on the instruction of Qatar’s Emir Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al-Thani.

The governor of Moldova’s autonomous Gagauzia region, Irina Vlah, also sent a letter of condolence to the Turkish president over the ongoing forest fires.

“It is very important to preserve national unity in the face of this great disaster and difficult time,” Vlah said, expressing condolences to the Turkish nation and to the families of those who lost their lives in the fires.

Gagauzia is an autonomous region in the Eastern European country that is home to a mostly Gagauz population – an Orthodox Christian, Turkic community.

At least eight people have lost their lives in the wildfires, which started on July 28 and were fanned by strong winds.

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan visited the areas affected by the forest fires, saying 50 million Turkish liras ($5.91 million) have been released to meet urgent needs.

Source: Anadolu Agency